Blitz Versus Bliss
by SlytherinFlame
Summary: When Kali Sakenta is severely injured in a football accident, Jasper Cullen is there to save her. But is he willing to give her over to the life of a vampire as well? Jasper/OC. Oneshot.


It all started and ended on a football field.

Of course, that would have been the only way Kali Marie Sakenta would have liked it. She only spent half her life there, running through the caked mud, having "chalk talks", and otherwise beating the boys at their own testosterone-influenced game.

Football, and sports in general, were what Kali lived for. She liked to sweat, to throw herself on the ground, and to feel the rush of adrenaline through her veins. Perhaps, even too much so.

Kali was standing behind the quarterback, one finger in the ground, ready to run. She was the wide-receiver, and she knew the ball was coming to her.

"Hike!" called a booming voice and, without thought, Kali took off running. She could hear the wind rushing by her helmet, her spikes sinking into the soft earth, but she took no notice. She rolled off the guard and turned for the ball.

Soaring through the air, she saw the brown and white swirl that was the football. Out stretched her gloved hands, and at that point, she couldn't think of anything she would have rather done than catch the ball.

Her hands gave in as the leather hit them, and she trapped the pigskin against her wiry frame like a cage, her pads becoming the iron bars.

She felt a hit from the side, and went tumbling into the ground. Something snapped, a spurt of intense pain shot through her body like fire, and then the world went black.

* * *

Emmett and Jasper could make out the football game from a mile away, sitting on top of a tall hill.

"We're dudes. This is the kind of thing human guys do," said Emmett, and that was the clincher. Ever since Alice, Jasper's wife, had died, Jasper found himself delving into the world of his brothers. He had hoped to find something to live for again, as the grief of losing the one he had cared for the most was too much. Today was an Emmett day, and his idea of a good time was, of course, American football.

"Is that a girl?" asked Jasper, looking at the lean frame of one of the players in a huddle.

"Where?" Emmett scanned the field, "What, that receiver? Can't be. I've never seen a girl play football."

Jasper stood up, and walked a couple paces down the hill towards the field, "I want to find out."

"You what?"

"I'm going to go find out who that is."

Emmett gave him a funny look, "Uh, why? Let's just watch the game."

"No, don't worry. I'll be right back," Jasper assured his confused adopted sibling, and he took off running.

Of all the things that came with the life of a vampire, running had always amazed Jasper the most. He could never get used to it, the sense of awe that it brought, and the feeling of the earth underneath his feet as he propelled himself forward; they were by far the best part of being an immortal. He also realized that he could run forever, since he didn't need to stop to breathe, and he wouldn't ever tire.

Vampirism may have been hell, and, sure, he would have stepped into Death's welcoming arms easily, but if he loved anything, it was the gift of speed.

* * *

There was a blond man in Kali's dreams.

He was speaking, though no coherent words escaped his lips.

He was moving, though his dance was to no specific melody or style.

He was calming, but Kali could not figure out what he was feeling himself.

He was like a statue, but still graceful. Rocky but serene. Stony, yet in motion.

Kali couldn't figure out what was going on. One minute she had gotten the first down for her football team; the next, she dreamed of an impossible man.

She thought herself crazy, but still, the man was beckoning to her. Telling her to come along with him, and join him.

Join him? Kali didn't know who he was, or what he wanted. How could she be so certain, so sure of herself that she would leap into this man's life?

No, no, she couldn't go with him. Kali had grown up knowing not to talk to strangers. She wouldn't leave to go with a man she didn't even know the name of.

But still, everything about this young man beckoned her to come forth. His eyes, a smoldering gold welcomed her. His broad shoulders comforted her. Even his smell attracted Kali, so much so that she couldn't resist the urge to avoid this man.

And so she decided, and into his strong, hard, cold arms she fell.

* * *

"Can you fix her up, Carlisle?"

Carlisle sighed and looked grim, "She broke her spine in two places, Jasper. If she lives through this, it'll be a miracle."

Jasper's face fell and Carlisle noticed.

"Jasper, what's going on? You don't know this girl. Why...?"

Jasper gave him a blazing look that made Carlisle stop talking, and then walked away.

In truth, Jasper didn't know why he cared about this girl so much. Sure, she was pretty, and, yes, she was definitely an athlete, but still, he didn't even know her name.

"Jasper, what's going on?" Emmett asked as he hastily approached Jasper.

Jasper merely shrugged and walked on.

"Jaz, don't be like this."

Jasper turned around, "She's going to die and there's nothing I can do about it."

The emotion in Jasper's voice shocked Emmett, and rendered him speechless, until a wave of cool passed over the both of them.

Jasper put his face in his hands, "I don't know what to do Emmett. I can't feel this way for a human! I'm...I'm a monster! Do I want to put this girl in the same amount of pain that Edward put Bella in?" Jasper groaned, his face still hidden.

Emmett looked at him for a moment and then spoke finally, "Are you saying you love this girl? You couldn't tell if she was male or female this morning."

"I know it's her," Jasper stated simply, and Emmett gaped at him.

"What...?" started Emmett, but Jasper interrupted quickly.

"I don't know what I'm going to do about all of this," Jasper said, his hands shaking violently, "I want to save her, but..."

This time Emmett interrupted, "Did you say you wanted to save her?"

"Yes, but..."

"Jasper! Do you know what that means? Bringing her into a life of, well," he gestured to himself, "this? Jasper, you can't do that to somebody. We said we wouldn't anymore!"

Jasper paused, letting Emmett's words sink in. He then spoke in a very slow, restrained voice, "If we don't save her she will never be able to walk again. Right now, she might even be dead. I don't know. I just don't..." he trailed off miserably.

Emmett gave him a meaningful look, "Jaz, you can wait. Give it a night of thought. Don't rush this."

"I just don't know," Jasper repeated, and his brother looked at him with nothing but pity.

* * *

Kali woke up to the sound of raised voices. Opening her eyes, she could see that they were two blond men, one with a lab coat, one without.

"I've told you, Carlisle! I've made up my mind!" the man without a lab coat shouted.

"I won't let you Jasper. You have no control. You must let her live," the man called Carlisle responded tartly.

"You're just going to sit down and do nothing?" yelled the man named Jasper. He looked as though he was in agony.

"I don't understand your take on this," Carlisle said, with an air of finality.

Kali tried to speak, to intervene their argument and to let them know they were being eavesdropped on, but she couldn't move a muscle. As a matter of fact, she could not even feel her muscles. What had happened?

Suddenly, a rush of calm swept over her and the man named Jasper turned his head to look over at her. His features looked eerily familiar. Kali's brain told her to be frightened, but, somehow, she was not.

Then it hit her; this man, Jasper, was in her dreams. This was the man she ran off with.

"She's awake, she's awake," said Jasper, obviously concerned. He rushed to Kali's bedside so quickly it seemed almost inhuman, "How are you?"

Kali couldn't so much as nod back. She desperately wanted to speak, to talk to the beautiful man, but she wasn't able to.

"Her face is temporarily paralyzed," said Carlisle, "That will probably go away once the morphine wears off. And it should wear off right about now." Carlisle checked his watch.

Already, Kali could feel the tight hold on her cheeks lift. Still, she could not speak.

Jasper glanced from Kali to Carlisle anxiously, "I sure do hope you know what you're doing."

Carlisle smiled slightly, "How long have I been doing this?"

Jasper did not smile back, but instead looked over Kali, "How bad is she injured?"

"Broken spine, her right arm's fractured, and her legs are permanently paralyzed."

Kali screamed softly, her mouth still stiff and hard to move.

"Are you okay?" Jasper looked maniacal, "Is something wrong? Is she in pain?"

"No, she's trying to speak I expect. Keep in mind that she can hear us," Carlisle said, calmly.

Kali felt another wave of calm crash over her, and her mouth no longer felt stiff.

"What's going on?" she asked slowly, over enunciating each word.

"You were in an accident during football," Carlisle told her, "Can you remember it?"

"Yes," Kali thought hard, "I remember getting first down, falling, and then...and then..." she shook her head.

"That hit must have broken your spine," Carlisle said, "Well, I don't know if you heard this already, and I hate to tell you, but you won't be walking anymore."

Kali looked at him in horror.

"You're paralyzed from the waist down because of a broken spine," explained Carlisle, pointing at her waist and gesturing down.

Carlisle frowned and trudged off muttering, "So young...too young..."

Jasper sat down at the end of Kali's bed, "I tried to save you," he said, a tone of sadness in his voice.

Kali looked up at him, slightly taken aback.

"I'm Jasper. Jasper Hale, if you were wondering."

"I'm Kali," she whispered.

"Carlisle is my father. Well, Dr. Cullen I mean," Jasper corrected himself.

Kali could not resist it, "You were in my dream. After I got hit."

At Jasper's expression she blushed violet.

"Your dream?"

"Everything went dark," Kali explained, "And then I saw your face. You wanted me to come with you and...I...uh...did."

Jasper sighed and stood up, "Kali, this is going to sound so out of nowhere and I apologize in advance for it," he looked at her face quickly and then went on, "When I saw you play, I had this sudden...attraction to you...I want to know more."

Kali couldn't have spoken even if she wanted to.

Jasper still continued, "When you got hit, I just, I lost it. I couldn't stand to see you destroyed on that football field. It's haunting. I don't want to even remember it.

"At first reaction, I thought you were dead, but then, I heard your pulse, weak, irregular, but it was still there. I was relieved beyond belief, but I knew I had to do something about it.

"And now you're paralyzed in both legs. You'll never walk again. There's nothing I can do about it."

Jasper finished, and his smooth voice cracked on the last sentence.

"What are you?" Kali said suddenly, "I know you're not human."

Jasper looked alarmed, but his voice stayed expressionless, "What makes you say that?"

Kali looked at him meaningfully, "You carry yourself differently. You look...unnatural doing petty human things like blinking. You speak perfectly. You stand tall. Everything you do is different," said Kali, and she braced herself for his reaction.

Jasper remained silent for a while. He sat as still as a statue, his eyes closed.

Finally, he spoke through his teeth, "You must be insane. How do you know?

"I just..." Kali paused and thought carefully about her answer, "I just know. I can tell."

"So what am I?" Jasper looked her hard in the eye, "What monster am I?" His voice raised hysterically.

"You're a vampire."

Kali just stared at him with interest, waiting for his response.

"You're right. How?"

"I know the vampire legends. My dad told me about them. You fit in perfectly."

Jasper did not say anything to that, but walked over to her bedside.

Kali was still surprised at the confidence in her voice, but the she said, "So what now? We're connected?"

"I think so," Jasper said, his voice slightly higher than it was before, "But doesn't it bother you to have me, a monster, connected to you?"

"Not at all," Kali replied, right away. her brown eyes locked right into Jasper gold ones.

"Kali..."

"No Jasper, I'm attracted to you as well. I know what you mean when you say connection," she gulped and then said, "You're beautiful. You're a genius. You're...otherworldly. But I'm attracted to you. You saved me, and well, I think I love you."

Jasper looked surprised, "Kali, how can you say that? You're a human. You wouldn't want something as horrible as me."

"I know it Jasper. It's you, it's got to be you," she gave him a hard, blazing look that reminded him of himself.

"How can I argue with that logic?" he said sarcastically, and then added, "For the record, I love you too."

"So that's it, isn't it?" Kali said, "I'm a human, and you're not. I'm going to die, but you're going to stay youthful."

"I'd rather be you," said Jasper, darkly.

"I can't walk. I can't run," she said with a pang of misery, "I can't play football anymore."

"I wanted to change you. It was beyond greedy of me, but I wanted to make you into something like me. Into one of us." Jasper grimaced at his own words.

Kali merely looked at him in wonder.

* * *

Everyday after the accident, Jasper sat by Kali and talked to her.

It was three months later that she decided she wanted to revisit the football field.

"I want to go back there, to the football field. I don't care if I can't walk or anything. Take me there, please?" Kali said, knowing it was unrelated to their current conversation.

With a sigh and a heavy heart, Jasper picked her up off the hospital bed and carried her to the football field she had broken her spine on at full speed.

He held Kali up as she stood on the field. Her face remained stony.

"What are you thinking?" Jasper asked her, curiously.

Kali shook her head, "I'll never play again."

"Oh." Jasper couldn't think of anything to say.

"All my life, people have told me I couldn't do things because I am a girl. I can't play baseball in the boys league. I can't play basketball with my guy friends. I had to go through a law suit to play football in high school," Kali said, as tears streamed down her face quietly, "I can't believe it's over."

"Kali, I can't do anything about this."

"Yes, you can, don't you get it?" she screeched, unable to control herself, "You can change me. You can make me whole again!"

"You're asking me to damn you to a life of immortality so you can throw around a ball?" Jasper looked skeptical.

"Jasper! Jasper!" Kali looked slightly crazed, "I want you. I want to be one of you. Please! I'm begging you."

Jasper looked from her tear-stained face to her unmoving legs, and couldn't help himself from feeling horrible.

"I'll talk to Carlisle. I don't think I can do it without asking him first."

"Jasper. Thank you," she said, and she ran a hand through his blond hair.

Jasper twitched away.

"What's wrong?" Kali asked, looking slightly hurt.

"You're human, I'm a vampire," Jasper said, and Kali composed herself as best she could, though Jasper saw yet another silver tear trickled down her cheek.

* * *

Two years later, Kali was running. Running faster than she ever had, and then turned and caught the football that was whipped at her face with ease. With an earsplitting crash, Emmett tackled her.

"Touchdown!" called Jasper happily, and Edward, one of Jasper's siblings gave Kali a high five.

Kali walked over to where Jasper was standing, looking up into the sky. He took her into his arms.

"Still connected?" she asked, winding his arms around her.

"I would think so," laughed Jasper, hugging her tight to him with all of his might.

* * *

**It started and ended happily on a football field, and Kali's life could not have been damned in a better way. For she had the choice of blitz versus bliss and came out with both.**


End file.
